


It's a Pirate's Life for Me

by carvedwhalebones (fuckyeahlucifersupernatural)



Category: Dishonored (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, Low Chaos Week 2016
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-24
Updated: 2016-07-24
Packaged: 2018-07-26 09:37:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7569187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fuckyeahlucifersupernatural/pseuds/carvedwhalebones
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emily has her heart set on being a pirate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It's a Pirate's Life for Me

**Author's Note:**

> **Fearless-flower requested:** "May I request something about Callista and Emily? I love how much Callista genuinely cares for Emily and I wonder how their relationship evolved when Emily became empress."
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> [ **For Low Chaos Week 2016** ](http://carvedwhalebones-events.tumblr.com/low-chaos-about)
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>  **Tumblr URL:** [carvedwhalebones](carvedwhalebones.tumblr.com)

Emily is busy standing on top of her desk, using a closed parasol as a makeshift sword, swinging it enthusiastically into the air. She even went as far as to undo the ribbon keeping her growing hair up and wrapped it around her forehead, giving out her best pirate cry. Emily is staging a “mutiny” on the idea of having a tutor. It scared off the first two nobles who sought out the opportunity, the third one is busy stammering out in disbelief and outrage at the scene. He’s busy looking at the Lord Protector for some sort of aid or hint, but Corvo Attano provides none. The Serkonan is busy sitting in one of the chairs, carefully drinking his tea, giving a rather expectant look at the applicant. 

With a disgruntled sound, the noble gives a curt bow to the Empress and attempts to relay his apologies that this may not be the position for him over the sound of Emily using what, suspiciously, sounds like Havelock’s creative curses. Corvo fixes the young Empress with a look, the two of them missing the noble’s rapid exit. 

“That was a little too much, Emily,” Corvo informs, sighing. He had hoped that Emily’s old tutor, before Jessamine’s passing, was still around, but he found that the aging woman became another statistic for the plague. Hiring a replacement isn’t quite as simple; Emily shows a great reluctance to let any newcomers into her inner circle and life, perhaps the outcome of what both Daud and the Loyalists have done to her. Corvo can’t say and he doesn’t have the heart and strength to make this a bigger issue. 

“I don’t need a _tutor_ ,” she argues, face scrunching up at the word. “Why don’t you teach me, Corvo?” Emily adds, turning her back to Corvo and hopping off of the desk, giving a jab with her ‘sword’ at one of the sitting dolls nearby. “You still haven’t taught that Tyvian chokehold to me!” she adds with sudden realization, twisting back to Corvo to fix him a reprimanding frown.

Corvo chuckles at that, lifting his hands in a show of surrender, “That can come after your lessons, which means, you need — ”

Emily gives a loud groan, turning back to give another quick jab at her dolls, waving the ‘sword’ as if she is suddenly parrying an attack.

“— a tutor,” Corvo finishes. 

Emily continues with her imaginary duel with the doll, sidestepping and swinging her ‘sword’ at the doll. They both perk up at the sound of the doors to the room opening, once more, one of the staff announcing the next candidate to be Emily’s tutor. Emily drowns it out with a battlecry, giving a fiercer jab at the doll, eagerly racing to the next one for a duel. Corvo is the only one who looks at the newcomer, rising to his feet with respect, giving a warm smile.

“I thought we already talked about how I felt about you pretending to be a pirate,” the newcomer voices out. 

Emily freezes, spinning around to find Callista Curnow standing before her. Her face breaks out into a bright smile.

 ** _“Callista!”_** Emily exclaims, instantly dropping her ‘sword’ and running over to her former nursemaid, running to greet her with a hug. Callista crouches down to meet her, fiercely pulling her in closer. Emily doesn’t pull away when one of the older woman’s hand moves to cradle the back of her head protectively and feels shoulders shake against her. Instead, she buries her face into her former nursemaid’s collar, the two remaining that way until Callista moves a hand to wipe at her eyes, carefully pulling back to meet the little girl’s gaze.

“I heard you needed a tutor, but it looks like you have your heart set on being a pirate.”

Emily gives a pout, finding herself caught in an impasse, reluctantly pulling away from Callista. “It’s more exciting,” she argues, quickly adding with growing enthusiasm, “and there are pirates here in Dunwall! I heard one of the staff say so! They have tattoos and sharp teeth! And there are witches and pirate witches — pirate witches! And Corvo said he’s going to teach me the Tyvian chokehold, soon.” 

Corvo gives a sound in disagreement on that one, but Emily ignores it.

Callista idly fixes the ribbon wrapped across Emily’s forehead, hoisting it further up before it can slip over the girl’s eyes, “Well, you know what makes a good pirate?” 

“Swords!” 

“Other than swords,” Callista patiently returns. 

“Big, fast ships!” Emily supplies, the young Empress soon listing off a variety of items and qualities that makes a good pirate. 

Callista gently pauses her list, “You missed one. What makes a good pirate is how smart and well-rounded they are. Not everything can be solved by swords. Where do you think you can get that?”

Emily gives a grumble, mumbling out despondently, “Studying.” The older woman gives a hum in affirmation. “Well,” Emily adds, a bit loudly, “I…I will study, but only because this will help me be the best pirate ever. This is about me being a pirate and you have to be my tutor.” 

Callista casts a glance at Corvo, watching the Lord Protector give a _‘we can work with that’_ shrug. The nursemaid turns back to Emily and gives a nod, “It would be an honor to be your tutor, Lady Emily, Queen of the Pirates.” She can’t help but smile at the way Emily’s face lights up at the title, practically jumping before them all. 

“Yes! Queen of the Pirates!” she proclaims, before she’s moving over to her desk with focused determination, grabbing a handful of parchment from the drawers and colored pencils. “Okay, we got to start now,” she starts off, laying it out on the desk and giving Callista an annoyed sort of look when she isn’t moving. Callista gives a pleasantly surprised smile and moves over to the desk, watching Emily race off to grab a chair and push it next to the desk. 

Corvo moves to Emily’s new tutor, offering a fresh cup of tea and grateful smile, “Welcome back, Callista.”

Callista takes the offered tea with a smile of her own, watching Emily write out a list of all of the things Callista should teach her to help her be a pirate, “It’s good to be back.”

**Author's Note:**

> _Love it? Hate it? Tell me in a review!_


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